by Lindsay H. Jones, USA TODAY Sports

by Lindsay H. Jones, USA TODAY Sports

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. - A year ago, Peyton Manning wanted to prove he could still play football. Now he's trying to prove he can win another Super Bowl, and win one soon.

Four months since a stunning double-overtime playoff loss to the Baltimore Ravens, Manning and the Broncos aren't shying away from Super Bowl expectations in his second year in Denver. Though Manning is under contract through 2016, neither he nor the team is willing to wait.

"We are in a tight window. I don't think anyone in this organization wants to look eight years from now, whether it's with me or anyone," Manning told USA TODAY Sports on Tuesday. "This is 2013, and everyone is all in for now. With free agency, with injuries, everyone is (saying) - let's try to take advantage of this opportunity."

For Manning, that "tight window" puts increased importance on offseason workouts. The relatively new collective bargining agreement limits the time he spends with his wide receivers, particularly starters Demaryius Thomas, Eric Decker and new slot receiver Wes Welker. After spending so many years with players like Reggie Wayne and Marvin Harrison in Indianapolis, Manning understands he doesn't have the luxury of time with his current crop of teammates.

"No question - that's why I feel like the improvements that we have made in the timing last year, that was critical," Manning said.

Manning quickly found chemistry with Decker and Thomas, and is optimistic he'll do the same with Welker.

"He (Welker) is saying things, asking questions it reminds me a little bit of when I played with Marshall Faulk. I was a rookie and my head was spinning, but he had great knowledge of coverage, and he would say things that, as I got older, I realized were things that a quarterback would say," Manning said. "Welker, I can tell, obviously because of the sophisticated offense he's been in, and his experience with Tom (Brady), he's really a sophisticated player from the cerebral standpoint."

Looking back on his first season with the Broncos, Manning considers it an "asterisk year," because of all of the changes he made, both with his body after recovering from four neck surgeries and switching teams for the first time in his career. Yet he posted near career-bests in passing yards, touchdowns and passer rating, a second-place finish in MVP voting as the Broncos won 13 games and earned the No. 1 seed in the AFC.

None of that matters much to Manning since it all ended suddenly. Manning threw two interceptions in the loss to the Ravens, one that was returned for a touchdown in the first quarter, and one in overtime that set up the Baltimore's winning field goal.

"I don't know if you ever get over a loss like that, but you try to use it to drive you and motivate you," Manning said.

One thing Manning would like to get past is questions about his health.

"Nobody really cares about how you feel, so quit talking about it," Manning said.

Yet at his age, and with his injury history, the health questions will not cease, even after he returned to a more normal offseason routine of weight lifting and conditioning. He rested his arm in late January and into February, and now he, his strength coaches and doctors notice improvement in his body and the way he is able to throw.

"I do have certain things that are just factors, post-injury. It's just the way it is. I have proven to myself that I can manage it, deal with it, compensate for it. You still push for things to get back to where they were before the injury, whether that's possible or not, you just keep doing it," Manning said. "There is no question I have improved from last year, but I still feel like there are improvements to make, and I think that will be the way it is until I stop playing."

Manning, 37, will likely the oldest starting quarterback this season. Brady, who will turn 36 in August likely second. Manning was, effectively, booted from Indianapolis when the Colts decided to draft his successor in Andrew Luck, just one of a star-studded crop of rookies last year.

Manning paid attention to the emerging quarterbacks, though many of them - Robert Griffin III, Russell Wilson and Colin Kaepernick - play nothing like him or Brady.

Manning wouldn't single out a favorite, but he said such a talented crop of young stars is great for the game, and the spread and read-option offenses many of them excel at won't go away.

"You see pro teams adapting things from college and I think it is here to stay. I do think the place for the drop back quarterback is in play. I think it's great for the NFL, it gives it another dimension," Manning said.